Brightline trains look empty? PB Post counts how many were on board

By: Mahima Singh and Jennifer Sorentrue , Palm Beach Post

WEST PALM BEACH — Before dawn on a Tuesday in late March, a four-car Brightline train — capacity 240 — pulled out of the company’s West Palm Beach station and headed south to Fort Lauderdale.

Just eight passengers were on board.

A few weeks later, an early-morning Sunday train carrying six people made the same trip.

While Brightline’s service has been touted as a model for the future of passenger rail in the United States, opponents have questioned whether the company can make money with so many empty seats, with one even derisively referring to them as “ghost trains.”

Not all the trains run near-empty. A Palm Beach Post review of ridership found at least three trains during a six-week period that carried more than 100 passengers, including a Saturday afternoon run in March with 144…